Identification apparatus and identification system

ABSTRACT

This identification apparatus is for identifying the degree of degradation of oil and includes a sensor that detects a substance arising from oil contained in an oil tank and a controller that determines the degree of degradation of the oil based on information related to the substance detected by the sensor and the distance from the oil tank containing the oil to the sensor.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to and the benefit of Japanese PatentApplication No. 2016-016223 filed Jan. 29, 2016, the entire contents ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure relates to an identification apparatus and anidentification system that identify the degree of oil degradation.

BACKGROUND

When cooking oil contained in an oil tank is heated, and food is friedmultiple times, the cooking oil gradually degrades. An apparatus thatcan objectively judge the time for replacement of cooking oil inaccordance with the degradation of the cooking oil has been proposed.

SUMMARY

An identification apparatus according to this disclosure is anidentification apparatus for identifying a degree of degradation of oil,the identification apparatus including:

a sensor configured to detect a substance arising from oil contained inan oil tank; and

a controller configured to determine a degree of degradation of the oilbased on information related to the substance detected by the sensor anda distance from the oil tank containing the oil to the sensor.

This disclosure may also be implemented as a system substantiallycorresponding to the above-described identification apparatus, and sucha system is to be understood as included in the scope of thisdisclosure.

For example, an identification system according to this disclosureincludes:

a detection apparatus; and

an identification apparatus; such that

the detection apparatus includes a sensor configured to detect asubstance arising from oil contained in an oil tank and a communicationinterface configured to transmit information related to the substancedetected by the sensor; and

the identification apparatus includes a communication interfaceconfigured to receive the information over a network and a controllerconfigured to determine a degree of degradation of the oil based on theinformation and a distance from the oil tank to the sensor.

According to this disclosure, an identification apparatus and anidentification system that can identify the degree of oil degradationwithout attachment to an oil tank can be provided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates an example of placement of anidentification apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 2 schematically illustrates another example of placement of theidentification apparatus in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram schematically illustrating thestructure of the identification apparatus in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for identifying the degree of degradation ofcooking oil using the identification apparatus in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram schematically illustrating thestructure of an identification system according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following describes embodiments of this disclosure in detail withreference to the drawings.

Embodiment 1

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates an example of placement of anidentification apparatus according to Embodiment 1. The followingdescribes the case of the oil being cooking oil, but the oil may be adifferent type of oil, such as oil for fuel or industrial oil.

In FIG. 1, a fryer 10 for cooking fried food, such as tempura or friedchicken, is installed on the floor. The fryer 10 includes a box-shapedcabinet 11 and an oil tank 12 that contains cooking oil in the upperportion of the cabinet 11. The cooking oil contained inside the oil tank12 is heated by a heater 13. An oil drain pipe 15 is connected to thebottom of the oil tank 12 via a valve 14. To facilitate oil drainage,the bottom of the oil tank 12 is inclined downwards towards the valve 14and the oil drain pipe 15. Cooking oil that has degraded is dischargedas waste oil by opening the valve 14. A waste oil tank 16 is disposed atthe bottom of the oil drain pipe 15 in order to collect the dischargedwaste oil.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the oil tank 12 is envisioned as beinginstalled in a large-scale fryer 10 for example used in a conveniencestore, restaurant, or the like, but the oil tank 12 is not limited tothese examples and may be installed in a smaller scale fryer.

Cooking exhaust, such as water vapor and oily smoke, is generated as aresult of frying. In order to discharge the generated cooking exhaustsufficiently to the outside, an exhaust fan 20 is installed above theoil tank 12.

An identification apparatus 30 according to one of the embodiments is,for example, attached to the exhaust fan 20. The identificationapparatus 30 comprises a sensor 31. The sensor 31 may, for example, bedisposed in the exhaust fan 20. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the sensor 31may be disposed near the exhaust fan 20 instead. “Near the exhaust fan20” for example refers to a wall adjacent to the ceiling where theexhaust fan 20 is installed.

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram schematically illustrating thestructure of the identification apparatus 30 according to thisembodiment. The identification apparatus 30 includes the sensor 31, acontroller 32, a memory 33, and a notification interface 34.

The sensor 31 detects a substance arising from the cooking oil containedin the oil tank 12. The actual sensor configuring the sensor 31 may beany sensor that can detect the substance and for example detects an odorarising from the cooking oil. In greater detail, the sensor thatconfigures the sensor 31 includes a sensitive membrane and a transducer.The sensitive membrane absorbs gas molecules that are the source of theodor, and the transducer converts the gas molecules in the sensitivemembrane into an electrical signal. The sensor 31 transmits theelectrical signal converted by the transducer to the controller 32. Forexample, if the cooking oil degrades, then fatty acids included in thecooking oil decompose. Upon fatty acids decomposing, aldehyde-based orketone-based substances are generated. In other words, for the sensor 31to detect the degree of degradation of cooking oil, it suffices forexample to provide a sensitive membrane that can detect aldehyde-basedor ketone-based substances.

The sensor 31 may, for example, be provided with a Quartz CrystalMicrobalance (QCM) type odor sensor that comprises a quartz crystal anda sensitive membrane made of an organic thin film. The QCM type odorsensor detects odor by the resonance frequency of the quartz crystalchanging upon gas molecules being adsorbed on the sensitive membrane.The quartz crystal functions as a transducer that converts detection ofgas molecules into an electric signal.

The sensor 31 may, for example, be provided with an oxide semiconductorgas sensor. The oxide semiconductor gas sensor detects the gasconcentration by a change in the resistance of an oxide semiconductorafter gas molecules are adsorbed on the oxide semiconductor. The oxidesemiconductor functions as a transducer that converts detection of gasmolecules into an electric signal. The sensor 31 may, for example, beprovided with an infrared gas sensor, an electrochemical gas sensor, acontact combustion type gas sensor, a biosensor, or the like.

The controller 32 is a processor that, starting with the functionalblocks of the identification apparatus 30, controls and manages theidentification apparatus 30 overall. The controller 32 is configuredusing a processor such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU) that executesa program prescribing control procedures. Such a program may, forexample, be stored in the memory 33 or in an external storage medium.

The identification apparatus 30 includes at least one processor forproviding control and processing capability to perform various functionsas described in further detail below. In accordance with variousembodiments, the at least one processor may be implemented as a singleintegrated circuit (IC) or as multiple communicatively coupled IC'sand/or discrete circuits. It is appreciated that the at least oneprocessor can be implemented in accordance with various knowntechnologies. In one embodiment, the processor includes one or morecircuits or units configurable to perform one or more data computingprocedures or processes by executing instructions stored in anassociated memory, for example. In other embodiments, the processor maybe implemented as firmware (e.g. discrete logic components) configuredto perform one or more data computing procedures or processes. Inaccordance with various embodiments, the processor may include one ormore processors, controllers, microprocessors, microcontrollers,application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signalprocessors, programmable logic devices, field programmable gate arrays,or any combination of these devices or structures, or other knowndevices and structures, to perform the functions described herein.

The controller 32 executes identification processing by theidentification apparatus 30 by controlling the entire identificationapparatus 30. For example, the controller 32 activates the sensor 31based on a predetermined input operation to the identification apparatus30 by the user of the identification apparatus 30. The sensor 31activated by the controller 32 starts to detect an odor arising from thecooking oil. The controller 32 acquires information related to the odordetected by the sensor 31 from the sensor 31.

The controller 32 determines the degree of degradation of the cookingoil based, for example, on information related to the odor detected bythe sensor 31 during frying and on the distance from the oil tank 12that contains the cooking oil to the sensor 31. The odor arising fromthe cooking oil contained in the oil tank 12 changes depending on thedistance from the oil tank 12. The controller 32 checks the informationrelated to the odor detected by the sensor 31 against data that, basedon distance, indicate the correlation between the odor arising fromcooking oil and the degree of degradation of the cooking oil. The datamay, for example, be stored in advance in the memory 33. When checking,the controller 32 acquires the data from the memory 33 and executes theprocessing for checking. As a result, the identification apparatus 30can identify the degree of degradation of the cooking oil. Theinformation related to the odor detected by the sensor 31 is not limitedto an odor arising during frying and may be for an odor arising whilenot cooking.

The controller 32 may, for example, determine the degree of degradationof the cooking oil based on the outputs of a plurality of sensors andthe ratio of the outputs. For example, the controller 32 may determinethe degree of degradation of the cooking oil based on characteristicvalues (output value, time constant, or the like) of the response of aplurality of sensors. For example, the identification apparatus 30 maycomprise a plurality of sensors configured to detect ethylene odors,alcohol odors, sulfur odors, ammonia odors, aldehyde odors, ketoneodors, and the like. For example, when determining the degree ofdegradation of cooking oil, the controller 32 may determine that thecooking oil has degraded when, among the outputs of the plurality ofsensors, the outputs from sensors that detect aldehyde odors and ketoneodors have exceeded a predetermined threshold.

When determining that the degree of degradation of the cooking oil hasexceeded a predetermined threshold, the controller 32 controls thenotification interface 34 in order to notify the user. This thresholdmay be set in advance based on data that are stored in advance in thememory 33 and indicate the correlation between an odor arising from thecooking oil and the degree of degradation of the cooking oil. Thethreshold may be changed appropriately by the user. In either case, thecontroller 32 stores information related to the threshold in the memory33.

The controller 32 may determine the degree of degradation of cooking oilusing a statistical method, such as principal component analysis, orusing a neural network. The controller 32 may generate data byperforming a learning process in advance to extract the characteristicvalues of the response of a plurality of sensors for each degradationstate of cooking oil. The controller 32 may store the data afterlearning in the memory 33. The controller 32 may then determine thedegree of degradation of cooking oil based on the degree of matchingbetween the data after learning that are stored in the memory 33 and thedata that are detected by the plurality of sensors. Based on newlydetected data, the controller 32 may update the data after learning thatare stored in the memory 33.

The memory 33 may be configured by a semiconductor memory, a magneticmemory, or the like. The memory 33 stores a variety of information,programs for causing the identification apparatus 30 to operate, and thelike. The memory 33 also functions as a working memory. The memory 33stores data that, based on distance, indicate the correlation betweenthe odor arising from cooking oil and the degree of degradation of thecooking oil. The memory 33 stores data that, for each distance from theoil tank 12 to the sensor 31, indicate the correlation between odor andthe degree of degradation of cooking oil. The memory 33 also storesinformation related to the threshold.

When the controller 32 determines that the degree of degradation of thecooking oil has exceeded a predetermined threshold, the notificationinterface 34 notifies the user. The notification interface 34 canprovide notification for example by a visual method using image,character, or color display, light emission, or the like; an auditorymethod using audio or the like; or a combination of these methods. Inthe case of providing notification with a visual method, thenotification interface 34 for example is configured by a display devicethat provides notification by displaying images or characters. Asillustrated in FIG. 1, the notification interface 34 may, for example,provide notification by causing an LED or other such light emittingdevice to emit light. In the case of providing notification with anauditory method, the notification interface 34 for example is configuredby a sound generating device, such as a speaker, that providesnotification by outputting an alarm sound, audio guidance, or the like.Provision of notification by the notification interface 34 is notlimited to a visual or auditory method. Any method by which the user canobjectively recognize the time for replacement of cooking oil may beadopted. For example, the notification interface 34 may providenotification with a vibration pattern or the like.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for identifying the degree of degradation ofcooking oil using the identification apparatus 30 according to thisembodiment. With reference to FIG. 4, an example of the processingexecuted by the controller 32 when the identification apparatus 30executes identification processing is described.

First, using an operation button or the like provided on theidentification apparatus 30 or outside of the identification apparatus30, the user performs a predetermined input operation to cause theidentification apparatus 30 to start identification processing. Forexample, the user may input the distance from the oil tank 12 containingthe cooking oil to the sensor 31. The distance from the oil tank 12 tothe sensor 31 is defined in advance as the distance from a certainposition of the oil tank. For example, the distance may be the distancefrom the oil level of the oil tank or the distance from the uppersurface of the oil tank.

After the identification apparatus 30 starts the identificationprocessing, the controller 32 activates the sensor 31 and detects anodor arising from the cooking oil contained in the oil tank 12 (stepS10).

Next, from the memory 33, the controller 32 acquires data indicating thecorrelation between the distance from the oil tank 12 to the sensor 31,the odor, and the degree of degradation of the cooking oil (step S11).The controller 32 acquires data indicating the correlation between odorand the degree of degradation of cooking oil at the distance from theoil tank 12 to the sensor 31.

Next, the controller 32 checks the information related to the odordetected by the sensor 31 against the data, acquired from the memory 33,that indicate the correlation and determines the degree of degradationof the cooking oil (step S12).

Subsequently, the controller 32 determines whether the degree ofdegradation of the cooking oil exceeds a predetermined threshold (stepS13). When the predetermined threshold is exceeded, processing proceedsto step S14. When the predetermined threshold is not exceeded,processing returns to step S10.

When the controller 32 determines that the degree of degradation of thecooking oil has exceeded a predetermined threshold, the controller 32controls the notification interface 34, and the notification interface34 notifies the user (step S14). The processing flow then terminates.

With the above processing, the identification apparatus 30 according tothis embodiment can identify the degree of degradation of cooking oilwithout being attached to the oil tank 12.

Furthermore, the identification apparatus 30 according to thisembodiment identifies the degree of degradation of the cooking oil basedon an odor detected by the sensor 31. Therefore the user can objectivelyperceive the degree of degradation of the cooking oil. In other words,the user can objectively learn the time for replacement of cooking oil.

The constituent elements including the sensor 31 are disposed on theoutside of the oil tank 12 in the identification apparatus 30 accordingto this embodiment. Therefore the identification apparatus 30 is lessprone to being soiled by oil and is easier to clean and manage.

Also, the constituent elements including the sensor 31 are disposed onthe outside of the oil tank 12 in the identification apparatus 30according to this embodiment. Therefore the identification apparatus 30is less affected by heat, thus reducing the occurrence of failure ormalfunction.

Furthermore, the controller 32 determines the degree of degradation ofcooking oil based on the distance from the oil tank 12 containing thecooking oil to the sensor 31 in the identification apparatus 30according to this embodiment. Therefore the degree of degradation of thecooking oil can be identified accurately without dependence on theplacement of the sensor 31.

The identification apparatus 30 according to this embodiment has beendescribed as including the sensor 31 that detects odor and thecontroller 32 that determines the degree of degradation of cooking oil.Different apparatuses that can communicate with each other, however, mayrespectively include a functional unit that detects odor and afunctional unit that determines the degree of degradation of cookingoil. The configuration in such a case is described as Embodiment 2 withreference to FIG. 5.

Embodiment 2

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram schematically illustrating thestructure of an identification system 40 according to Embodiment 2. Theidentification system 40 includes a detection apparatus 50 and anidentification apparatus 60. The detection apparatus 50 and theidentification apparatus 60 are connected over a wired or wirelessnetwork 70, such as an Internet connection, a Wide Area Network (WAN),or a Local Area Network (LAN), for communication with each other.

The detection apparatus 50 is placed in the same way as theidentification apparatus 30 according to Embodiment 1 as illustrated inFIG. 1 or FIG. 2. The detection apparatus 50 includes a sensor 51, acontroller 52, a memory 53, a notification interface 54, and acommunication interface 55. The functions of the sensor 51, controller52, memory 53, and notification interface 54 are similar to thefunctions of the sensor 31, controller 32, memory 33, and notificationinterface 34 of the identification apparatus 30 illustrated in FIG. 3.Hence, a description thereof is omitted here. The remaining structure,placement, and the like are identical to those of the identificationapparatus 30 according to Embodiment 1. Hence, a description thereof isomitted, and the following focuses mainly on the differences fromEmbodiment 1.

The controller 52 of the detection apparatus 50 according to thisembodiment does not determine the degree of degradation of cooking oil.Instead, via the communication interface 55, the controller 52 transmitsinformation related to the odor detected by the sensor 51 to theexternal identification apparatus 60 over the network 70. Subsequently,the controller 52 acquires information, transmitted over the network 70from the identification apparatus 60, related to the identified degreeof degradation of the cooking oil via the communication interface 55.When the degree of degradation of the cooking oil exceeds apredetermined threshold, the controller 52 controls the notificationinterface 54 in order to notify the user.

By communicating with the identification apparatus 60 over the network70, the communication interface 55 transmits and receives a variety ofinformation.

For example, the communication interface 55 transmits informationrelated to the odor detected by the sensor 51 to the identificationapparatus 60. When the user appropriately sets the threshold related tothe degree of degradation of the cooking oil, the communicationinterface 55 also transmits information related to the set threshold tothe identification apparatus 60. Furthermore, the communicationinterface 55 also transmits information related to the distance from theoil tank 12 to the sensor 51, as input by the user, to theidentification apparatus 60. Various information transmitted from thedetection apparatus 50 to the identification apparatus 60 may, forexample, be transmitted each time the controller 52 acquires suchinformation or be transmitted when the user performs a predeterminedinput operation on the detection apparatus 50.

The communication interface 55 acquires information related to thedegree of degradation of the cooking oil, as identified by theidentification apparatus 60, from the identification apparatus 60 overthe network 70.

The identification apparatus 60 may, for example, be configured by aserver. The identification apparatus 60 includes a controller 61, amemory 62, and a communication interface 63.

The controller 61 is a processor that, starting with the functionalblocks of the identification apparatus 60, controls and manages theidentification apparatus 60 overall. The controller 61 is configuredusing a processor such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU) that executesa program prescribing control procedures. Such a program may, forexample, be stored in the memory 62 or in an external storage medium.

The controller 61 determines the degree of degradation of cooking oilbased on the various information received from the detection apparatus50 via the communication interface 63. In greater detail, the controller61 determines the degree of degradation of the cooking oil based oninformation related to the odor detected by the sensor 51 and on thedistance from the oil tank 12 that contains the cooking oil to thesensor 51. The controller 61 checks the information related to the odordetected by the sensor 51 against data that, based on distance, indicatethe correlation between the odor arising from cooking oil and the degreeof degradation of the cooking oil. The data may, for example, be storedin advance in the memory 62. When checking, the controller 61 acquiresthe data from the memory 62 and executes the processing for checking.

Based on information related to a threshold received from the detectionapparatus 50 via the communication interface 63, the controller 61determines whether the degree of degradation of cooking oil has exceededthe threshold. The threshold has been described as being appropriatelyset in the detection apparatus 50 by the user, but this example is notlimiting. This threshold may be set in advance based on data that arestored in advance in the memory 62 and indicate the correlation betweenan odor arising from the cooking oil and the degree of degradation ofthe cooking oil.

The controller 61 transmits information related to the determined degreeof degradation of cooking oil to the detection apparatus 50 via thecommunication interface 63 and the network 70.

The memory 62 may be configured by a semiconductor memory, a magneticmemory, or the like. The memory 62 stores a variety of information,programs for causing the identification apparatus 60 to operate, and thelike. The memory 62 also functions as a working memory. The memory 62stores data that, based on distance, indicate the correlation betweenthe odor arising from cooking oil and the degree of degradation of thecooking oil.

By communicating with the detection apparatus 50 over the network 70,the communication interface 63 transmits and receives a variety ofinformation.

For example, the communication interface 63 receives information relatedto the odor detected by the sensor 51 from the detection apparatus 50.The communication interface 63 also receives information related to theset threshold from the detection apparatus 50. Furthermore, thecommunication interface 63 also receives information related to thedistance from the oil tank 12 to the sensor 51 from the detectionapparatus 50.

The communication interface 63 transmits information related to thedegree of degradation of the cooking oil, as identified by theidentification apparatus 60, to the detection apparatus 50.

With the above processing, the identification system 40 according tothis embodiment can identify the degree of degradation of cooking oilwithout the identification apparatus 60 being attached to the oil tank12.

Furthermore, the identification system 40 according to this embodimentidentifies the degree of degradation of the cooking oil based on an odordetected by the sensor 51. Therefore the user can objectively perceivethe degree of degradation of the cooking oil. In other words, the usercan objectively learn the time for replacement of cooking oil.

The constituent elements including the sensor 51 are disposed on theoutside of the oil tank 12 in the identification system 40 according tothis embodiment. Therefore the identification system 40 is less prone tobeing soiled by oil and is easier to clean and manage.

Furthermore, the controller 61 measures the degree of degradation ofcooking oil based on the distance from the oil tank 12 containing thecooking oil to the sensor 51 in the identification system 40 accordingto this embodiment. Therefore the degree of degradation of the cookingoil can be identified accurately without dependence on the placement ofthe sensor 51.

It will be clear to a person of ordinary skill in the art that thisdisclosure may be implemented in ways other than the above embodimentswithout departing from the spirit or essential features thereof.Accordingly, the above explanation merely provides examples that are inno way limiting. The scope of this disclosure is to be defined by theappended claims, not by the above explanation. Among all changes, thosechanges that are within the range of equivalents are considered to beincluded within the scope of this disclosure.

For example, the functions and the like included in the variouscomponents and steps may be reordered in any logically consistent way.Furthermore, components or steps may be combined into one or divided.

For example, FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate structures in which theidentification apparatus 30 is attached to the exhaust fan 20, and thesensor 31 is placed on or near the exhaust fan 20, but the placement ofthe identification apparatus 30 and the sensor 31 is not limited tothese examples. The identification apparatus 30 may, for example, beattached to a wall near the ceiling where the exhaust fan 20 isinstalled or may be placed on the floor. Similarly, the sensor 31 may beplaced on a wall closer to the oil tank 12.

For example, in the above embodiments, the sensor 31 has been describedas being configured by a sensor that detects an odor arising from thecooking oil, but a sensor other than an odor-detecting sensor may beused. For example, the sensor 31 may be a sensor that detects odorlessgas molecules arising from the cooking oil.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An identification apparatus for identifyinga degree of degradation of oil contained in an oil tank, theidentification apparatus comprising: a sensor configured to be disposedat a positive distance spaced from the oil tank and to detect gasmolecules that are a source of an odor arising from oil contained in theoil tank; a controller configured to execute functions of determining adegree of degradation of the oil based on information related to the gasmolecules detected by the sensor and the positive distance from the oiltank containing the oil to the sensor and outputting a signal containingthe degree of degradation; and a memory configured to store data that,based on the positive distance, indicates a correlation between the odorarising from the oil and the degree of degradation of the oil.
 2. Theidentification apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: the controlleris configured to check the information against the data stored in thememory to determine the degree of degradation of the oil.
 3. Theidentification apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: a notificationinterface; wherein the controller is configured to provide, upon makinga determination that the degree of degradation of the oil exceeds apredetermined threshold, notification of the determination via thenotification interface.
 4. The identification apparatus of claim 1,wherein the sensor is disposed in an exhaust fan installed above the oiltank.
 5. The identification apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controllerreceives, via an operation button on the identification apparatus, aninput regarding the positive distance, by a user.
 6. An identificationsystem for identifying a degree of degradation of oil contained in anoil tank, comprising: a detection apparatus; and an identificationapparatus; wherein the detection apparatus comprises a sensor configuredto be disposed at a positive distance spaced from the oil tank and todetect gas molecules that are a source of an odor arising from oilcontained in the oil tank, and a communication interface configured totransmit information related to the gas molecules detected by thesensor; and the identification apparatus comprises a communicationinterface configured to receive the information over a network, acontroller configured to execute functions of determining a degree ofdegradation of the oil based on the information and the positivedistance from the oil tank to the sensor and outputting a signalcontaining the degree of degradation, and a memory configured to storedata that, based on the positive distance, indicates a correlationbetween the odor arising from the oil and the degree of degradation ofthe oil.
 7. The identification system of claim 6, wherein the controlleris configured to check the information against the data stored in thememory to determine the degree of degradation of the oil.
 8. Theidentification system of claim 6, wherein the controller receives, viaan operation button on the identification apparatus, an input regardingthe positive distance, by a user.